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I typically style the
lowest level in the Date hierarchy as Date; calendar, fiscal, and
perhaps other date hierarchies would typically share Date as a common
lowest level.

We are now ready to
process the cube to check results, so as to ensure we are progressing toward
our objectives. Involved cube designs often require several such "updates;"
the ease with which Analysis Services facilitates processing a cube is
certainly a pronounced (and appreciated) benefit.

76.
Click the Process Cube button
on the top toolbar (See Illustration 22above).

77.
Click Yes, when asked if
saving the cube is desired.

78.
Click No to bypass the Storage
Wizard.

79.
Ensuring that the Full Process
method is selected on the Select the Processing Method dialog (the default in
our example at this stage), click OK to begin processing.

The Process
status dialog appears, and details the progression of the processing steps as
they are accomplished. The end result is the green Processing Completed
Successfully message at the bottom of the dialog, as depicted in Illustration
53 below.

Illustration 53:
"Processing Completed Successfully" is Indicated

80.
Click Close to dismiss the Process
status dialog.

81.
Click the Data tab to view the
results so far, shown in the illustration below.

Illustration 54:
The Initial Fin_Rptg Cube Layout - Data Tab View

82.
Expand the 5000 Net Income
level of the Account dimension, by double-clicking the "+" sign to the
left of the description on the Data tab.

83.
Expand the 4000 Total
Expense level now appearing within the expanded Net Income level (to its
right), as shown in Illustration 55.

We see that our initial
objective, to create a core cube housing the expense portion of the Income /
Profit and Loss Statement, appears to have been accomplished. We also note
that the Assets, Liabilities and, more significant to our upcoming focus, Net
Sales, levels are unpopulated, but are included in the model for our examination
in Part II of this lesson.

84.
After examining the expanded Data
tab view, click File -à Exit from
the top menu to close the Cube Editor.

We have achieved the
design and development of our initial core cube for financial reporting, having
set up the expense side of the cube to allow for analysis of the components of
operational expenses. We will develop our initial core further in Part II of this lesson, then we'll bring in the sales /
revenue and other information to make the Profit / Loss position of the
organization complete for basic financial reporting purposes. We'll populate
the Net Sales elements after discussing the options we have available within
Analysis Services for doing so.